Yeah, so we might have all been in our twenties, but dammit! We wanted to win, so we had a battle plan!
We all took off in our suggested directions and almost immediately I heard footsteps ahead of me and peered around the corner, seeing Jase running towards me, so I flattened myself against the wall and waited for him to run past.
He noticed me straight away and raised his gun to fire, but I was quicker and shot straight on target.
Get in!
Leaving him to his five second penalty, I took off under the bridge seeking my next victim. Yeah, it definitely felt like I needed to do an evil Muahahaha! laugh, but I held it in.
I was on a stake-out!
I heard a screech and a shout of “Motherfucker!” from somewhere over on Jax’s side, followed by a loud hoot, so I assumed he’d managed to get Taylor, but I was on a mission, there was only one girl I really wanted to be chasing.
“Taylor! I need to recharge!”
Oh, she really could not have made it any easier for me, clearly she was not a Laserquest pro! You never admit your weaknesses.
I ran towards their recharging station, knowing that she would have to head there. Peeking out from behind the wall, I saw her look both ways before dashing across the walkway directly to their station.
Easy target! She may as well have handed me the win. Silly girl. I took aim, fired once and hit her target first time. She whirled around, searching for who had shot at her but I darted back behind the wall hoping the she wouldn’t see me.
It was all part of my plan, really piss her off and confuse her, that’s when the real Harper shines through. I get her eyes, fierce bright and beautiful. Her mouth, vicious, feisty and hot. But mostly, her lips, red, full, biteable. I loved her lips, if I could, I’d feast on them forever.
Forever doesn’t scare me, when you’ve had the life I have, you want secure, safe, stable.
Does it matter that I was only twenty one? I didn’t think so.
When you know, you just know.
And I knew.
Most people wouldn’t go out of their way to piss off their girl, but I did, I wanted her over the top, exaggerated reaction. Badly.
When she didn’t react to our set-up earlier, I wanted to question her about why she was avoiding me, tell her to stop playing games and being so scared. The girl lived inside her own head too much.
So this was all part of my plan, I wanted her riled up, and I was going to be the one to do it.
Harper
I just knew it was him! Jax would have basked in the glory of his shot and Ruben would just have chuckled and walked by as if he didn’t do anything. I knew them too well. Not Mason, he was purposely trying to get to me. I bet he thought he was so damn clever.
Wrong move pretty boy, you’re mine now. No one beats me!
I stayed in the recharge station for a good five minutes, hearing the screeches and curses from all the other players as they either managed to hit someone, or they were the ones getting hit. From the language I could hear from Taylor’s mouth, I was fairly certain we were losing but the game meant nothing by then, it was all about me beating Mason.
I flattened myself against the wall and slid out of the station, I knew if I ran across the walkway, he’d get me, so I followed the edge of the arena until I came to the bridge. I crawled up, praying he hadn’t figured out my game, then rose onto my knees, peered over the side and spotted him almost immediately, silly fucker was still where he’d caught me, as if I’d wait around that long!
Bless.
Aimed. Fired. Scored!
Perfect shot. His mouth dropped open and his eyes did a sweep of the area before they connected with mine. I stood, knowing he was on a penalty, and gave him a grin and a wiggle of my fingers in a condescending wave before high-tailing it away from him as fast as I could.
I’ll be honest, it was so much fun.
I was fairly sure it turned out to be some sort of twisted foreplay for Taylor and Jax seeing as I caught them making out twice during the game. They were supposed to be on opposite teams, the clearly didn’t care about the rules!
Traitors!
He shot me, I shot him, then vice versa. Over and over again. We were literally at a stalemate. I didn’t care by that point though, I was just enjoying myself.
I was too busy trying to hide from Mase to notice anything around me. Then again, I never really pay attention to anything!
So I ran off the end of the bridge, turned the corner and collided, face first with something, or someone else. The force of it sent me down and I landed with a thud, screaming out at the pain that shot through my wrist.
“Fuck!”
“Are you okay?”
Ruben. He always was too bloody quiet, so quiet that I ran straight into him.
I spoke through clenched teeth.
“Do I fucking look okay?”
“No not really, but thought I’d ask. Do you want a hand up?”
I held my injured wrist to my chest and gave the other hand to Ruben to help me up.
No matter where we go, or what we do, it’s always me that somehow manages to get injured. That time I couldn’t even last ten minutes without doing something stupid.
Urgh, it’s so damn frustrating!
My body poured with sweat, it was disgusting and the throbbing in my wrist didn’t seem to be easing but when the final buzzer went just seconds later, I bent and put one hand on my knee, panting, still with a huge grin on my face.
I knew Mason was fun, but this was playful, competitive, good-natured friendly banter. It was probably the first time, in the almost three months that I’d known him that I really felt like he was making an effort to be my friend, and a little less effort on trying to get me back into bed. I felt relieved, I think, but there may have, possibly...been a little regret in there too.
Damn!
Being in love with someone that you knew you could only ever be friends with, it hurt like a bitch. I took the pain though. It was better for me to deal with a subtle ache, than a gut-wrenching agony. Because that’s what would happen. I knew it, nothing good could come of me and Mason, we were both too damn stubborn, too controlling.
So I ignored the pangs of regret, the feeling that I’d made a huge mistake by pushing him too far, and I tried to focus on the group. It was probably just the pain making me think stupid things anyway.
Yeah, it definitely had to have been the pain.
I was lucky, not many people have truly amazing friends like I do, when I figured Mason would be there right along with them, it eased the ache slightly. Nothing made it fade completely though.
Fuck, why did I start thinking so much? What a way to put a downer on a good day.
Mason
I have no idea what happened. We we’re having such a great day, everyone laughing and joking around, spending time together. Watching Jax and Taylor make-out far too often was the only downside, until Harper just shut down. I swear I actually saw it happen. She was holding her own, joking around with the rest of us, then she just, stopped laughing.
It was like the light had gone out of those beautiful, unique eyes of hers.
“Go make sure she’s okay.” Ruben suggested.
“Why?”
“Did you not hear her scream? She’s injured. Might want to take her to the hospital and get it checked out. She had a pretty harsh landing.”
She was hurt? How did I not know that?
I stepped closer to her and noticed straight away that she was trying to hide her grimace in pain and she was holding her wrist against her, shielding it from any contact.
“Come on Sunshine, can’t take you anywhere can we? You’re so clumsy! Let’s get that wrist checked out.”
“No.”
“No?” I asked, wondering why she wouldn’t want to get it looked at.
“No. I’m not going to the hospital.”
“Why? It could be broken.”
“It’s not, look it’s fine.”
Acco
rding to Harper, ‘fine’ must mean that it hurts like a bitch because she just moved it slightly and sucked in a sharp breath from the pain.
I really wished she wasn’t so fucking stubborn.
I couldn’t keep up anymore. She was funny, then bitchy, then sweet, then pissed off, then cute, then stubborn as hell. It was well and truly fucking with my head. It was the first time I’d had thoughts of just, giving up on her all together.
Just watching her, clench her teeth and look away from the group sealed it for me. I wasn’t going to give her up, but I was going to stop chasing her like a fucking lost puppy.
No more, Harper.
No more.
Chapter Eleven
Harper
The day out with the all the guys had me feeling low. I didn’t like it. I didn’t do depressed! I kept myself upbeat and happy at all times.
Just not then.
Damn that Mason Fucking Brent.
He was under my skin, so much I could feel him with every heartbeat. Like fire, moving through my veins. I didn’t want him there, I wanted him out.
At least I thought I did, but his behaviour when we were out was, to say the least, unsettling. I had become so accustomed to his flirtatious behaviour, with it not being there...I missed it.
This was only made worse by an impromptu visit from Taylor that afternoon. She’s always had a key anyway, so when I heard the door open, I glanced up expecting to see Jase, or even Mason but nope, little miss ‘look-how-much-my-boyfriend-loves-me’ came strolling through, with Jax. Urgh, they even looked at each other like their whole world was made of one person. Disgusting.
I know that sounds bitter, and I guess I kind of felt slightly that way. Not about the fact that they were happy, no, I loved that for Taylor. It was that I’d lost my best friend...in a way. She just didn’t need me anymore. It was the feeling of being needed that I missed.
“What’s up chick?” I asked, knowing from the wariness written all over Tay’s face, that I wasn’t gonna like whatever she said.
“Well...” She hesitated, then started again, “I just wanted to talk to you, to see if you really are okay lately? You’ve been quieter than usual, and we all know you’re not one for being quiet! What’s going on with you? Does it have anything to do with Mason?”
Ahh crap. I hated that she could read me so well. I couldn’t hide anything from her, never really could. Some friends might have kept out of it, and let me work through it on my own, not Taylor though, she knew I needed her without me even asking. Again though, I did sort of wish she hadn’t bought Jax with her. I didn’t get chance to respond though, because the door flew open and Jase came sashaying through. He had about four bags with him and I just rolled my eyes, knowing he’d been out spending money that he didn’t have. He didn’t care, ever!
He had a serious case of shopping addiction.
“Oooooo are we having a Harper intervention now?” He asked.
“A what?” I returned, bemused.
“Ya know? Like with did with Tay? The whole, intervention thing, when one of us is doing something stupid that we think needs changing? God stop looking at me like that! Just like we did with Tay, and the letter.” He said letter on a stage whisper, but Tay was standing right next to him so I don’t actually know why he did that.
Strange man!
I couldn’t have been more shocked when Tay let out a giggle and said, “Jase, I’m right here! You know I don’t care about that stupid note anymore. Harper’s little intervention idea worked okay! This is ridiculously clear. But yeah, I guess it kinda is the same. Just with less people.” She threw her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at me expectantly. Shit!
“So come on Harp, what’s going on with you? Why are you being such a stubborn bitch and givin’ Mase the run around?”
I looked back and forth between the two of them, wondering how the hell I was going to get away with lying to their faces.
I wasn’t. It was that simple, I had never been able to lie to them.
“I just don’t want a relationship!” I declared, sounding more than a little defensive. I was getting seriously bored of repeating myself too.
“What’s so wrong about that? I like Mase, of course I do, he’s gorgeous, he’s playful, he’s just...oh fuck, okay, so I love Mase. I’m still not going to be forced to do something I don’t want to do. Not happening.”
I could feel the tension in the air. I knew they wanted to berate me. Tell me how stupid and pigheaded I was being. Neither of them did that though. I watched as Tay ran her tongue along her teeth and then bit her bottom lip with indecision.
“Ok, if that’s the way you want it, then I’m not going to argue with you. But I will say this...” She took a deep breath and continued.
“Babe, you know you’re everything to me. You always have been. Do I think you’re making the right decision? No, not even slightly. Do I think you’re doing the exact same thing that I was doing? The exact same thing that you pushed me on? Yeah babe, that’s exactly what you’re doing. I never had you pegged as a hypocrite Harp, never. I thought you were better than that. You have a guy, who you’ve admitted yourself that you love. A guy who could, and would, give you the world. A guy who looks at you like you’re the light of his life, the answers to all his questions, the air he needs to breathe. Do you know who else looks like that?”
She paused again, but it was a rhetorical question. We both knew that.
“You fucking do. That’s exactly why, even when, babe sorry to be so harsh, but even when you’re a total bitch to him, that’s why he hasn’t given up on you. He can feel it, hell, everyone can feel it. You don’t think that when we’re all together, everyone can feel the intensity between the both of you? It’s not lust, sexual tension, not even slightly. It’s love. Pure, beautiful, soul shaking love.”
I rolled my eyes at her then.
Love wasn’t beautiful. It was painful, heartbreaking, controlling, powerful and I didn’t want anything to do with it. Love is that emotion that overpowers every other, there isn’t even a battle to have, it consumes everything surrounding it. And it was consuming me, piece by piece, emotion by emotion.
If you’re angry, love wins. If you’re sad, love wins. If you’re so fucking heartbroken that you feel like you can’t even take another breath from the pain, guess what?
Love...fucking...wins.
“Don’t roll your eyes at me! I never said it was easy. Just because something is beautiful, doesn’t make it perfect Harper. Hell, look at some of the bitches who go to the club! They might be beautiful under all those inches of make-up, but they’re filled with spite and they’re pure ugly on the inside. That’s not what I’m talking about. This is real, and you’re wasting every second of it.”
I just stared at her. What could I really say? She would never understand. No one would. I knew she’d eventually lost her temper when she threw her hands up and walked out. She didn’t even say goodbye and I flinched when the door slammed.
Jax didn’t follow her straight away. He had been silent throughout Tay’s rant, didn’t say a single word.
I swung my eyes to Jase to see him staring at his feet. He raised his eyes to mine, sighed and said, “Yeah, what she said.” Then he followed Tay back out of the door, that he’d only just came in through.
I didn’t waste any time.
“Go on then Jax, are you going to bitch at me too?”
“Nope.”
Well, wait, what?
“You’re not?”
“No. But I do have a question to ask.”
“Ok...” I said slowly.
“Is there a reason?”
“For what?” I asked, confused.
“The way you’re acting. Everyone else is concentrating on the fact that you and Mase keep circling each other without going for what you really want. But that doesn’t concern me, Mase is big enough to fight his own battles and I’m not exactly the right person to be telling him he shouldn’t chase you. The th
ing I don’t understand is, it’s not just him. You’re shutting everyone else out too. I don’t give a fuck what your reasons are, but you’re hurting your friends, and you’re hurting my girl. Whatever your fucking reasons are, sort them, fix them. Do whatever the hell it takes to get your head screwed on and stop acting like a bitch.”
“I...” I started, but was cut off.
“Not finished.”
I stayed silent.
“That’s not all you. It’s a front. You’ve got some major internal battles going on in that pretty head of yours Harp, and it’s spilling out into the rest of your life. Talk to Mase, talk to Taylor, fuck, talk to me if you have to. Just do something. Fix this, and everything else will fall into place just how it’s supposed to.”
He didn’t give me chance to respond. Not that I would have known what to say because I wouldn’t. He turned and left too, he just didn’t slam the door.
I was seriously thinking that they had all lost their minds! When did my friends become advocates for love and relationships? I didn’t know. But what I did know, was that I needed to get out. Go somewhere, do something, do anything.
So I decided to get wasted. Not just tipsy, or slightly drunk, no I was getting completely and utterly fucking annihilated. I didn’t want to think about Mase or hear about him and I certainly didn’t want to see him. So I took myself to a little shabby dive-bar. I didn’t fit in there. When I first walked in, everyone looked at me as if I was lost.
That soon turned to a look of pure hunger, as soon as they realised I was staying. They were circling me like they were sharks and I was the bait. I should have probably been slightly scared. I wasn’t though. Seeing as by that point, my blood was probably pure alcohol. I downed shot after shot of tequila. No salt, no lime. I just didn’t want to feel anymore.
At some point in the night, I was leaning with my hip resting against the bar when I felt a presence behind me and I tensed.
Resist (London) Page 10
